Games Inbox: The end of Kinect, Metroid Prime 4, Hitman Absolution

Today’s morning Inbox wonders where all the little guys have gone in this year’s Christmas release schedule, as one reader despairs over PS Vita sales. To add your own comments email
gamecentral@ukmetro.co.uk.

Kinect – is it time to give up?

End the experimentI have to agree with all the complaints about Kinect at the moment. I hope that the failure of Fable: The Journey will be the final nail in the coffin and convince Microsoft that the system just does not work as advertised. Unless you want to play a dancing game there is zero point to it, and I for one do not want to pay £150 for the privilege of dancing with my TV.I supposed if Kinect 2 was more reliable it’d be okay, but let’s face it it’s only going to be better and not ever 100% accurate. I really can’t understand why you’d want to play a game in which you cannot guarantee that the controls will do what they’re supposed to, especially if that means you’re going to lose or do badly as a result.I’m not against change, I like Zelda: Skyward Sword and Wonderbook seems interesting, but Kinect is all flash and no substance. It looks the most high tech of all the motion control systems but it’s by far the least accurate.GorminLosing the middle groundAlthough I agree that there are some good games due out this Christmas (Assassin’s Creed III, Halo 4 Black Ops II, Hitman Absolution, maybe Far Cry 3) but there’s very little else to in between. I know people have been saying for years that medium-sized games and publishers are being squeezed out but this is the first time I’ve really noticed it happening.Between these big blockbusters there’s almost nothing else of note and I don’t think it’s because of the Wii U. I just wonder what actually brought about the change? Was it smaller companies realising they were just going to get steamrollered at Christmas or do they just generally make less games now due to the cost of development?Either way I can’t see it as being a good thing, especially not for creativity given every single one of the big games is a sequel.MudkipSpring for USo I understand Pikmin 3 isn’t going to be released until the ‘spring’. That’s a real upset as far as I am concerned as that was the game I was really waiting for. And I know it’s Nintendo but I really don’t understand it – if this game has been in development since before the Wii how could it possibly not be finished already? I mean it looks like a Wii game, it has the same controls as a Wii game, and yet from that release date you’d think Nintendo were just rushing it into production.I know this apparent madness is all part of the Nintendo charm but it can get annoying. I’m just glad to hear that Retro Studios have apparently moved into bigger offices. That can’t be for no reason. My biggest hope for them is that they’re working on a brand new IP of the sort Nintendo would never do. Metroid Prime is one of my favourite games ever but I’d much rather see something brand knew than a fourth game.The Bishop

Enjoyable obsessionLoving XCOM and Dishonored, I for one will put XCOM aside for now as this will be the time eater. From the moment I started and the strategic decisions I agonised over, the epic scale of it made me put it aside for a booked holiday date instead, and so concentrated on Dishonored which is a game I could get into straight away, and a slight linearity to it, in a more open type way.But wait, as GC reader NOZ pointed out, with so much to read and listen too, from things lying about, I always find my first playthrough is double the time of my second, sometimes more. My OCD as a gamer is admiring the locations with its textures and dynamic lighting effects, I can’t help myself, I always have to stay in the room and look at everything, from walls, paintings, ceilings, windows and what’s outside, tables, chairs and various items scattered about, carpets and floors – I’m telling you, it’s an obsession, but enjoyable.I want to know every piece of the story of the world I’m in, and if I have to take a time out, then I’ll do it. I’m sure the developers would appreciate this, after all the hard work gone into the programming of this game.The equivalent of this in my retro years was taking a time out and listening to the great music from the games of the 16-bit era or Amiga era, I even taped them on a tape recorder.But as my favourite genre is open role-players, I am use to this and my gameplay is never spoilt but enhanced. I adapt sightseeing or note, letter reading, with the actual quest or mission and it’s like routine and moulded to a streamline effectiveness, so all can be appreciated.And with a game like Dishonored, which are full of places dripping in an atmosphere of a very high standard, just like BioShock and Deus Ex: Human Revolution, the eye candy is mind blowing.And before I go back to the game, so far no annoying bosses to upset the gameplay equilibrium, unlike Human Revolution, as stealth is my baby in this.AlucardSomeone must do itWhy is it that online store game prices are so expensive compared to finding a good deal on the Internet or even finding it cheaper in a shop? Resident Evil 6, for instance, I picked up for 32 quid or something. I think it was 49.99 on the PlayStation Store. How the hell is that going to encourage people to go digital? I would expect to get it for 20 quid if I can get the boxed one for 32. The big plus being that you can sell the boxed version on when you’re done. Sony are not the only ones though – Nintendo are just as bad with their 3DS titles and I assume the Wii U will be the same. Don’t have an Xbox so can’t speak for Micrososft but would be surprised if it was different. As a side note I think Nintendo need to have a lot more sales on their stores with good discounts… What exactly is the logic behind these crazy pricing decisions? I’d be surprised if anybody bought the games at those prices. If they do then they must be a distant relative of Baldrick or something!SteveGC:We’ve never heard any sensible explanation for the practise. We can only assume that enough people buy them at those absurd prices to make it worthwhile.Giving it a kickRE: Vectormon. Star Citizen is already using crowd funding via its own site – however it seems to be struggling a bit, so Kickstarter is being considered as an option. To be honest, I would recommend people invest on the main Star Citizen site itself. Kickstarter takes a cut, so either the prices would be higher, or Chris Roberts will get less money from your investment. Still, Kickstarter would be good for further advertising.

In other news, XCOM is fantastic. I love how it removed some of the more annoying features of the original, resulting in an easy to understand but still satisfyingly difficult game. I have encountered a couple of annoying bugs (which I’ll report to 2K/Firaxis later), but I have been playing obsessively.Joseph DowlandExclusive powerSo I see that the PS Vita had its slowest week of sales so far in Japan. Just 6,134 in seven days, that’s less than half of what the PSP did and so far behind the 3DS’s 79,300 that it’s just plain embarrassing. I just don’t see any way back for Sony now , not when there’s so little out this Christmas (remember that Japan doesn’t care about Assassin’s Creed or Call Of Duty) and nothing at all exciting I can think about except maybe Tearaway (which again I doubt Japan will like).It’s weird how the PSP’s fortunes have reversed for the Vita and now it’s only chance of success is in the West. It just shows the importance of an important exclusive too. I don’t think anyone even blinked in the West when Monster Hunter went to the 3DS but look at the massive effect it’s had on two different consoles – even though most of the world doesn’t care about them.I can’t help thinking what would happen if something like Call Of Duty or Grand Theft Auto ever went exclusive, in my opinion that would kill the competition just as quickly.Catso MatsoThe next controversyNow that all the arguing over Resident Evil 6 has die down a bit what’s the betting that Hitman Absolution is going to be the same situation? I’ll be honest I haven’t played a lot of the older games but I always liked the idea and appreciated the amount of freedom. But while I agree that Resident Evil 6 is rubbish I don’t quite understand the upset with Absolution.I know the trailers make it look like an action game but all the gameplay and previews I’ve seen seem to suggest you can play it however you want. Do any diehard fans want to explain what their beef with it is? I’m not for a minute suggesting they’re wrong, but I’m just not invested enough in the series to really understand the issues.Gav.Inbox also-ransI’ve given my XCOM squad the names of various work colleagues. Certainly alleviates any disappointment when one is killed in action.Sukie Keough (gamertag)Just completed ‘Splosion man – what a great bonkers ending! Wish more endings was like that for every games…. Advise you to complete the game as it’s a great platformer but otherwise if you are lazy here is the link .Neil Patterson

I have just seen some game footage of the PlayStation 3 game The Last Of Us and I have to say it looks like a stunning game. Is there any news of when this is likely to be released?David ClixbyGC:Nothing beyond it being next year, we’d assume sometime in the autumn.So wait, what was that new game Capcom were going to announce a while back? I’m guessing it wasn’t Dino Crisis 4?Zombie LeninGC:If you mean at Gamescom it wasRemember Me.

This week’s Hot TopicThe subject for this weekend’s Inbox was inspired by reader Terror4mer, who asks what’s the best intro to a game you’ve ever experienced?What’s the most impressive opening 10 minutes you’ve seen in a game, whether it’s a non-interactive movie, actual gameplay or a mixture of the two. What was it about the opening that particularly impressed you and how important do you think the opening sequence is to a game?Do you get frustrated when a game takes too long to get to the gameplay and how long are you willing to wait until you actually play something (bearing in mind tutorials as well)? How important is presentation, music, and other non-gameplay factors in establishing an intriguing intro? And how easily put off are you, if a game doesn’t get more interesting until later?

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